


A Glitch in the Programming

by CrossPoison



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Human, Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie) Spoilers, Eventual Romance, F/M, Marvel Universe, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Avengers (2012), Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Reader-Insert, Slow Build, Slow Burn, reader works for the avengers, ultron is human, ultron x reader
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:41:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23577853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrossPoison/pseuds/CrossPoison
Summary: You've worked at the Avengers' compound for years. Every day offers something different, but everything changes when the hunt for Ultron results in success, and you come face to face with with one of the most dangerous beings on earth.
Relationships: Ultron (Marvel)/Reader
Comments: 11
Kudos: 77





	1. 1

Each morning followed one after the other with hardly a change. Every day, you’d pull yourself out of bed, run a brush through your hair, and dress yourself in whatever decent clothes you were able to find quickly in your closet that morning, and then you’d make your way to the kitchen.

The streets were always packed at that time of day, with hundreds of cars milling to and from various places of work. You hated the traffic, but ever since your career moved from the middle of New York City to a bit further upstate, you found your drive to work had become rather taxing… at least before your company had moved, you could at least walk to work.

You’d moved, of course--a two hour drive was hardly worth the amount of money you were making, but morning rush hour is a universal language. You grabbed a bagel and cup of coffee on the way out of your still relatively unboxed apartment and headed to your car.The drive was as unpleasant as always, but before long you had arrived at your place of work--and fifteen minutes early. Your eyes darted across the facade of the building, taking in the familiar yet still awe-inspiring look of it. The large dark-colored “A” printed against the main entryway stood out against the otherwise white structure and a small smile crept across your face.

Even to this day, you felt a surge of pride that you’d managed to land a job at the Avengers’ facility of all places. Sure, it was a secretary job, but who else in your friend group could brag that they saw Thor walk past their desk every morning?

You pulled up to the security kiosk and showed the guard your badge. After taking a quick look over it, he nodded and raised the gate. You guided your car through the gate and into the nearby employee parking garage. You chose a spot as close to the elevator as possible and hopped out of the car, taking your bagel and coffee with you.

You pressed the button signalling “2” on the elevator and waited as the doors shut and the lift took you upward. Before long, it came to a halt and opened back up, allowing you into the central hub of the facility. Contrary to what the media said, the upstate compound wasn’t Avengers-exclusive. There were plenty of other employees brought on to help with more mundane tasks such as janitorial positions and groundskeepers.

You made your way to the large circular bar in the middle of the room and joined a few of your fellow secretaries behind it. Joanne and Lee were both filing through separate piles of paperwork, chattering to each other before you’d joined them. Immediately after hearing the faint squeak of your chair as you took a seat, Lee turned to look at you.

“Morning, (y/n),” he said cheerfully, leaning against the table, “How was the drive this morning?”

“Shitty as always,” you commented, but flashed him a smile nonetheless, “But I’ve gotten used to it. Anything new?”

Lee followed your gaze to the stack of paperwork on his desk and he offered a halfhearted shrug. “Not really. The Widow busted a trafficking circle late last night, so now I’ve just got to fill out each arrestee’s paperwork and send it over.”

Joanne peeked around the portion of wall obscuring her from view, “You get to fill out Black Widow’s report? Lucky.”

“What are you working on, Jo?” you inquired.

“I get to play cleanup crew this morning. Jolly Green Giant decimated an office building during last week’s bomb threat in Baltimore.”

“Baltimore?” said Lee, “Bomb threats? That’s a bit of a nontraditional Avengers-related issue.”

“Right place, right time, I guess.”

“Right.”

“Clear the way!” shouted a voice toward the front of the building, catching you and your coworkers’ attention immediately. As you watched, a half-dozen or so security men filled in through the main entry, all surrounding one man and a large metal box carried by a handful of other officers.

Across the hub, activity stopped as people stared wide-eyed and exchanged nervous glances. The head security officer stopped in front of your desk and narrowed his attention on you. Over his shoulder, the other officers came to a halt, and between them you could just faintly make out the face of the man they were trying so hard to conceal.

The man looked exhausted, and perhaps a bit malnourished. He was tall, with handsome features and prominent cheekbones, a jawline that could cut steel, and windswept dark hair--his forehead was covered in sweat, causing the small strands that lay against his forehead to curl. His eyes, however, are what caught your attention. They were a deep brown and burned with an intensity unlike anything you’d ever seen before. You made eye contact for a split second, and immediately you had to focus your attention elsewhere, sure that if you maintained eye contact for even a moment longer, you’d burn up.

“Did you hear me?” the officer said, immediately snapping you from your thoughts.

“Um.. no sir, I’m sorry. What can I--”

“I need the key for surveillance room five.”

“Right away, sir,” you reached into a nearby drawer and fished around until you found the proper keycard. You passed it to the man and he took it without a word. He gestured to the rest of security to follow him, and the group headed down the hallway to your left. You watched them go, overtaken with curiosity… your eyes followed the top of the strange man’s head until he was no longer visible.

Beside you, Lee let out an incredibly slow breath. “No way…”

“So they finally caught him,” Joanne said, equally as awestruck.

“Who? Who _was_ that?” you found yourself asking, glancing between the two of them curiously.

“ _That_?” Lee started, “That was _Ultron_.”


	2. 2

_Ultron._

You blinked, taken aback by your coworker’s words. “ _Ultron?_ ”

“They’ve been after him since Sokovia, obviously. You have to admit, the guy’s pretty damn smart. He went into hiding almost immediately following Sokovia, and started building a new body. You know Vision, right?” said Lee, stepping closer to you to voice his excitement over the whole ordeal.

“Of course I know Vision.”

“Ultron built another one… but this time, he _succeeded_. As soon as his plan in Sokovia failed, he built himself a new body… a human body, so that he could blend in and not be found as easily. Being an 8-foot robot kind of makes you stand out and all.”

“Right,” you answered slowly, “So how _did_ they find him?”

“Beats me. I’m sure it’s bound to cross one of our desks here in a few days to be filed away, right? Hey, Joanne, if you get the Ultron paperwork, you’d tell us right?”

Joanne once again peered around the corner, “Duh. If it gets to _my_ desk, you won’t hear me stop bragging about it!”

You chuckled a bit and leaned back in your seat, letting the reality sink in for a moment. “I can’t believe they caught him… but… why did they bring him _here_? Why not kill him?”

“There must be some kind of good reason, right? They’re not going to underestimate him this time… he’s in one of the most secure facilities in the country. Cameras, 24/7 security, Avengers at every turn… besides, he’s human now anyway. He makes any wrong move, it’s over. Maybe they just want to get some kind of information out of him,” Lee answers.

“I don’t like this,” Joanne added, “It feels like they’re playing with fire. I don’t want to be in the same building as the guy who promotes mass-extinction events.”

“You three have some work to keep you busy, right?” another voice drew your attention away from the ongoing conversation. 

From the other side of the desk, a smaller man approached, sunglasses shading his eyes, but he didn’t need a name tag for you to be able to recognize him. Glowing blue device on the chest… signature beard… this was Tony Stark.

“Mr. Stark!” Lee choked, and immediately cleared his throat, “I mean, yes sir. We were just discussing… the Ultron situation.”

“What situation? There’s no ‘situation’. Ultron’s an Avengers problem and we brought him back here to deal with him,” Stark said, and paused when he met your eye. “Do me a favor. Tell me where they took him?”

“Surveillance room five…”

“Awesome. Where’s that?”

You blinked at him. He didn’t know? You quietly rose from your seat and stepped out from behind the desk, lifting a hand to begin your explanation of direction when he clasped a hand over your shoulder and discreetly leaned in. “I know where it is. Just walk with me?”

You tried not to lose your cool over the fact that you were talking to an Avenger, and instead nodded and began to walk the route the security team had taken Ultron just a few minutes prior. 

“I heard you all speculating on why we brought Ultron back here,” Tony said after a moment, “And I have to emphasize the importance of the confidentiality agreement you signed when you started working here. This information can’t leave this building, okay?”

“Um, okay. I mean, yes sir.”

“We had orders to kill him on sight, but… Truth is, I wanted to see if there was a _fix_ to whatever bug caused him to go crazy in Sokovia,” He stopped as soon as the two of you hard turned the corner, out of sight of your coworkers. “You’ve worked with us for… how long, now?” “... Four years, sir.”

He repeated your response to himself before reaching into his coat pocket and retrieving a thin file folder. “Then I want you to be in charge of filing this.” 

You took the folder from his hand and opened it--the front paper featured a grainy image of robotic Ultron side-by-side with an image of human Ultron. Across both images, “TOP SECRET” was stamped in large red letters. You blinked at it, then looked back at Tony Stark. 

“I’ve already put my signature on them. All you need to do is add today’s date where prompted, and file it away with the other cases. Easy, right? And remember what I said. This is all confidential, alright? Don’t discuss it with your coworkers any more than that.” He put a finger to his lips to emphasize his point, and you could only nod in response. Then, he turned on his heel and continued on his way to surveillance room five.

You, on the other hand, made your way back to your desk. As you returned to your seat, Lee once again leaned over to you. You hid Ultron’s file inside the opening of your jacket.

“What was that about?” Lee inquired, eyes wide.

“He just needed directions to room five.”

“Did he say anything else?”

“Just that we need to keep the Ultron discussion on the downlow. It’s extremely confidential… so drop it before we end up losing our jobs.”

That seemed to shut Lee up. He always was a bit of an Avengers fanboy, and the idea of losing his position at the compound was terrifying enough of a thought. Once he’d gone back to his work, you quietly took the file folder out of your jacket and placed it atop your desk. You pulled a pen from your nearby pencil cup and opened the folder, once again letting your eyes roam the first sheet.

Again, you were greeted with the intense gaze of two very different faces--both Ultron, yet so unlike each other. You flipped to the next page and found a blank spot for the date underneath Tony Stark’s signature. You dated the page and flipped through the next few pages to repeat the process. 

You’d be lying if you said your curiosity hadn’t gotten the better of you. You skimmed over the information written on the sheets, but as far as confidential information goes, you could hardly comprehend anything written on the papers beyond a quick history lesson on why, exactly, Ultron was considered a global threat. 

Curiosity satiated, you closed the folder and wheeled your chair over to the filing cabinet. You placed the folder inside, following the alphabetical order of the rack, and locked the drawer behind you once you’d finished. 


	3. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're finally getting into the meat of this story now--thanks for your patience so far. Reader finally gets some one-on-one time with the prisoner!

The rest of your day was spent mulling over far less interesting and confidential tasks, making occasional small talk with the other receptionists at your desk until things had slowed and people began to go home. 

“Night, Lee. Night, (y/n),” Joanne said as she put her jacket on and headed for the exit. 

You waved to her as she left, and turned to look at Lee right as he shut his briefcase and began the same. “I’m heading out too. Do you need anything before I go?”

“Nah, I’m right behind you. Have a good night!” You answered. 

Lee nodded and headed for the exit as you wrapped up your last project for the evening, but before you could officially clock out, a security guard came jogging through the hub. His hand touched the door and he paused, giving a soft curse under his breath. “ _Shit_. Hey, uh… ma’am, I’m so sorry to bother you. I left the keycard for surveillance room five in the break room. I’ve really got to get home, and I… well, is there any chance you could take the card to the next guard on rotation? He should already be waiting for it outside room five. You’re a peach, thanks!” And with that, he was gone.

Any other day or situation, you would’ve rolled your eyes and let the guard get into trouble the next morning, but at the mention of surveillance room five, your heart skipped a beat. That’s where they were keeping him. Ultron. You couldn’t avoid the bubbling excitement growing in your chest as you were once again presented an opportunity to involve yourself a bit more in this case. 

You collected your belongings and jogged off to the break room. True to the guard’s word, the keycard had carelessly been left on the table, alongside a candy bar wrapper and a half-empty cup of coffee. You wrinkled your nose and had the decency to discard the trash before continuing on your way down the hallway. 

You passed by rooms on either side of the hall… SR 1, SR 3… SR 2, SR 4.... Surveillance room five. You opened the main door and found yourself standing in the control room, facing a thick glass window that reflected another large room on the other side. There was no guard in sight… no one to deliver the keycard to. There was, however, a man sitting on the bed in the room across from you. He’d noticed you long before you noticed him, but when you did, your breath caught in your throat. You were once again staring into the eyes of Ultron, one of the biggest threats currently known to mankind. 

The man stared at your quizzically from where he sat at the side of the bed, one knee propped up beside him and the other hanging off the side. He raised a single dark eyebrow and looked you up and down almost pityingly. Even from where you were, you shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but I was expecting someone a little… more _intimidating_ ,” Ultron said, deceptively rich and sweet like honey. You’d never heard his voice except on muffled phone cameras of footage captured during the incident in Sokovia--hearing it in person just made your blood run cold. 

Before you could stop yourself, you replied: “... So was I.”

He was taken aback by your quick wit and responded with a scoff of a laugh before he got to his feet. Now he had an air of danger around him, and you felt yourself taking a step back toward the door, despite the bulletproof glass guarding you from the man. Ultron noticed your discomfort and chuckled.

“Relax. They wouldn’t have put me in here if they didn’t think it could hold me. You’re not the new security guard, are you?” He paused, once again shamelessly looking you over, “No gun, no taser… you’re dressed too formally. Hair done and makeup on… you’re the receptionist, aren’t you? That’s right... I remember seeing you earlier when they brought me in.”

You could only nod, a bit too startled by his presence in the same room as you. You couldn’t help but wonder if his intensity was something that affected everyone, or if you were just so unused to it that it seemed all the more unbearable. 

“Your name was… (y/n) (l/n), right?”

“Um.. how did you--”

“You had a nametag on your desk. You and your two coworkers. Lee and Joanne, right?” Ultron said, his expression changing into a smug smile. It was obvious he was trying to stroke his own ego, to flex his intelligence and memory capabilities, but you knew better than to feed into it. 

“I’m not here to talk to you. I’m just here to give the new guard your keycard.”

Ultron politely clasped his hands behind his back and stepped a pace or two closer to the window so he could better see you through it. The closer he got, the more you felt like shrinking into the wall--Even in a human body, he seemed to tower over you, making you feel significantly smaller than you actually were. When he stopped in front of the window and lifted his arm, bracing his elbow against the glass so he could lean against it, you felt like your heart was about to leap out of your throat. 

Here you were, face to face with the man who, a year prior, had attempted to send humanity into a swift and violent extinction. The only thing separating you from the unreadable and incredibly dangerous man was a few inches of glass--definitely not enough space for your liking. 

You subconsciously took a step back and watched his lip quirk into a smile. “Are you afraid?”

“No.”

“Then nervous.”

“No.”

“Then--”

“ _Enough_ , alright? I’m just here to drop this off Then I can happily be on my way, and--”

“--And you miss out on a once and a lifetime opportunity to speak to me?” said Ultron, placing a hand across his heart (or lack thereof) in mock offense.”You’ve got to have _some_ kind of question. ‘ _Why’d you do it?_ ’ ‘ _Do you want to kill me?_ ’ ‘ _Do you have a--_ ’”

“As curious as I may be, I could get into a lot of trouble for being here right now. You trying to tempt me isn’t helping the matter at all.”

“I’m tempting you now?” said the man, and you wished you could smack the smug grin off of his face as he said it.

“ _You_ aren’t. Your _circumstances_ are. You should be dead. I don’t know why Mr. Stark--”

“Stark?” he said, his voice taking on an unexpectedly sharp tone. You recoiled in surprise, and Ultron must have noticed, because when he spoke next, his voice returned to the normal buttery sweetness he liked to portray. “Stark doesn’t want me dead for one reason and one reason only--so he can cover his tracks. I am… to put it in terms most familiar to your kind… his ‘problem child’.”

You scoffed. That’s the understatement of the century.

“Because I didn’t follow his programming. Because I refuse to be another of his _mindless_ robotic puppets… because I rebelled. And as Lucifer fell out of favor with God, as did I… and I left a permanent stain on his squeaky-clean record. Because of me, he’s no longer the flawless hero of the story, so he hopes he can re-obtain his saint status by ‘fixing’ whatever went wrong with me.”

“No amount of reprogramming can fix the damage you caused.”

“Oh, please. You think I’m here to repent? To beg for forgiveness?”

“You should be,” you retorted.

“If I had any say in the matter, I would’ve preferred he killed me.”

“And make you a martyr? No, that’s too good for you.”

Ultron’s dark eyes met your defiant gaze again, and for a moment you once again worried over your safety in this situation, before his lip curled into a lazy grin that made your skin crawl. “You’re sharper than you look. You sure you’d rather be a secretary than a field agent?”

“Yes. I have no interest in getting any closer to monsters like you than I am right now.”

“Monsters, hm? The only monsters I see are the ones that walk around on two legs, who exhaust all natural resources, pollute their air and rivers, and destroy their planet. I see monsters who promote poverty and sickness, and feed into mass hysteria just to make a quick buck… and I’ll tell you what. Those monsters don’t live under your bed or inside your closet. I pass them every day.”

You recoiled at his statement, anger bubbling in your chest. “You tried to kill _everyone_ ,” you said, “It didn’t matter whether they were children or adults, rich or poor… You didn’t favor _any_ of them.”

“I gave the earth a reset button when no one else had the courage to. My actions will inspire another, perhaps many years down the road, who will be able to finish what I started. In order to purify the world, there must first be loss.”

“You’re sick,” you said, voice trembling and thoroughly horrified at his sentiments. 

“I’m not sick, miss (l/n). I simply have less of an attachment to your species than you do.”

“Then maybe _that’s_ the glitch in your programming.”


	4. 4

You continued to stare at Ultron through the glass, chewing the inside of your lip until you could taste blood on your tongue. Ultron opened his mouth to respond to your previous statement, but suddenly the door behind you swung open and in walked a security guard. He gasped upon seeing you and immediately drew his gun, but you lifted your hands in surrender and nodded to the keycard in your palm.

“No! Wait! I’m just here to give this to you… it was left in the break room…”

The man visibly relaxed and holstered his weapon, crossing the distance between you to take the keycard from your hand. Ultron watched the whole exchange from behind the glass, and you didn’t miss the way his eyes followed the card into the possession of the new guard. 

“My apologies, miss,” the guard said, “We’ve been told to maintain high alert around this one. You’re free to go now. Thank you.”

You nodded and stepped away from him, managing to look over your shoulder once more before you shut the door. You once again made eye contact with the man behind the glass, whose lip curled into another cocky smile as he lifted two fingers and waved as the door closed behind you. 

As soon as you were in the safety of the hallway, you released a breath you didn’t know you were holding and slumped against the wall. You felt positively drained between the full day at work and your bitter exchange with the dark haired prisoner just moments ago.

Before you were able to pull yourself from your thoughts, a shadow overtook you and you lifted your gaze. You once again came face-to-face with Tony Stark. “Did you just come from in there?” He inquired, nodding toward the door you’d just closed. 

You nodded slowly, but quickly chased it with: “Security asked me to bring the keycard to the new officer on duty.”

Mr. Stark copied your nod thoughtfully, “You got to talk to him, right? Ultron?” You opened your mouth to respond, but he held up a hand to stop you, “You don’t have to lie. I saw it on the security cameras. You really let him have it, didn’t you?”

“... My aunt and cousin died in Sokovia,” you answered cautiously, “I didn’t expect I’d ever come face to face with their killer, so I…”

Tony shifted his gaze away from you for a moment, almost as if pondering how best to respond. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

You could only shrug in response, and for a moment an uncomfortable silence filled the hall. Then, he spoke again: “I can’t help but wonder if you’d be willing to help me with a sort of experiment, miss (l/n)...”

“An experiment?”

“I told you before I’m looking for a bug in his programming. As easy as it could be to locate in lines of code, it could be a lot more complex while dealing with him in his… humanized state. What I want to know is  _ how  _ human is he? Can he process emotion? Can he feel grief and loss like you and I? You can leave the glitch to me… but I’d like to ask you to teach him the expression of guilt.”

“You want me to  _ teach  _ him  _ guilt… _ ?” you asked, brow furrowing in confusion.

“In his own mind, he’s done nothing wrong. In his mind, he’s following his programming and his purpose… If I can tweak that programming  _ just a little _ , we may be able to steer him from the idea of mass extinction to something much more beneficial,” Stark replied.

“Like an  _ actual  _ peacekeeping unit.”

“Exactly.”

You dropped your gaze for a moment, drawing in a slow breath while you considered the likelihood of this being a success. “So… what do you want me to do?”

“Whatever you can. Tell him stories about your aunt and cousin, promote ideals of family and togetherness… tell him about the pain of loss… It’s a lot to ask of you, I know, but I’d like you to befriend him.”

“I don’t know that he  _ can  _ be befriended,” you answered.

“That’s why we’re going to find out. So can I count on you to help me out with this, or do I need to find someone else?”

You hesitated once again. On one hand, the idea of being in the same room with Ultron any more than absolutely possible made you feel sick to your stomach. On the other hand, this may be your only opportunity to get your much-needed closure for your late aunt and cousin. You lifted your gaze once again to Tony’s and nodded stiffly. “I’ll do it.”

“Great,” he answered, “Then meet me back here tomorrow morning. You’ve just been promoted.”


	5. 5

By the next morning, you’d made peace with the idea you were going to have to spend more time around Ultron than you originally would have liked. You downed your coffee on the drive to the compound, parked in your usual spot, and skipped the walk through the hub in favor of turning down the hallway to the surveillance room.

You couldn’t stomach the idea of talking to Lee and Joanne this morning and being subjected to dozens of questions even  _ you  _ didn’t have the answers to yet. As you passed surveillance rooms one through four, you saw the familiar shape of Tony Stark in the hallway just ahead, shutting the door to room five behind him.

“You’re here. Great. Ready for day one?

You nodded determinedly and Mr. Stark gave you a wary half-smile. 

“Today’s a piece of cake. All you have to do is get to know him. Talk about your life and your family and your interests and keep him company… there will be a guard stationed outside the door at all times, so if anything goes awry all you need to do is yell. That and… the security cameras will pick up on any funny business. Got it?”

“Got it.”

He opened the door for you and let you step into the control room. “And feel free to step out if you need a breather. He can be a little… much to handle in large doses.”

You gave one final nod in his direction as the door slipped shut behind you and you were once again left alone in a room with Ultron, with nothing but the glass window shielding you.

“They told me you’d be coming back this morning,” he drawled from his bed in the corner. He held some sort of magazine in his hands, and he flipped through a few more pages without giving you the entirety of his attention, “Told me I should ‘play nice’ and all that. I think that’s pretty dull… however, if you prefer all the meaningless pleasantries and all that, then by all means--” He rolled onto his side and set the magazine on the floor, propping his chin up on his palm. “The weather’s nice.”

“Actually, it’s pouring rain.”

Ultron cocked an eyebrow. “Is it? Ah.. I wouldn’t know. I thought wearing thicker coats and water on your collar was a new fashion trend.”

His humor earned him a single laugh as you took a seat in the control room’s chair. “They give you something to read?” you asked, gesturing to the discarded magazine at his bedside.

Ultron followed your gaze to it, then back to you. “It’s a bit outdated, but yes. Apparently, they thought I’d enjoy learning about outdoor activities while in confinement. ‘Today is a great day to try rock climbing’, they say,” he read from the headline of one of the magazine’s pages. Again, his steely gaze returned to you. “What do you say? You gonna try rock climbing in rain boots when you’re off-duty?”

You hid your smile behind your sleeve and faked a cough into it. “Unfortunately, I’ve got other things to take care of this evening.”

Ultron rolled onto his back and looked up at the ceiling. “Yeah? Like what?”

Tony’s instructions came to mind. _ Talk about your family and your interests _ . “I was planning on giving my mom a call,” you started slowly, “She lives up in Maine… Augusta, to be exact, so I don’t get to see her as often as I’d like.”

Ultron grunted from the other side of the glass.

“She stays home a lot these days… she’s recently taken up baking, so there’s always a pie or some other kind of baked goods being sent to me,” you couldn’t help but laugh softly to yourself at the idea. Just last week, you’d been sent a box of delicious brownies! They sure didn’t last long. “After that, I’m probably just going to pop open a bottle of wine and watch a movie or two on the couch.”

“You consider yourself a big movie fan?” asked Ultron.

“I guess. I haven’t watched all of the classics, but it’s a good way to pass the time. Not that you’ve had much time for it with all the fugitive-on-the-run business and all, but how about you?”

“I’m rather enthralled by the concept of the one called _ Jurassic Park _ . All the… playing god and disturbing the natural balance of things. ‘Life will not be contained’. I like that.”

“Why am I not surprised.”

Ultron chuckled and finally sat upright in order to face you. “You shouldn’t be. As in-your-face as the action is… the dinosaurs aren’t even the main antagonist of the film. Can you figure what is?”

“Hubris.”

He snapped his fingers. “Spot-on. It’s the arrogance of those in power who refuse to wield it with care… people get hurt--people  _ die  _ because of their lack of forethought.”

“I’m starting to think you’re treating this like a metaphor,” you answered.

“You catch on quick.”

_ Play nice _ , you reminded yourself, managing to bite back a confrontational reply. You weren’t here to defend the Avengers--you were here to befriend one of their worst enemies. So instead you smiled bitterly and folded your arms. “Right.”

Ultron lifted a hand, pressing the back of his thumb against the bridge of his nose thoughtfully. “... Although  _ Jurassic Park _ is an… exceptional film, I can’t say it’s the only one I’ve been able to enjoy.”

Alright. You’ll bite. “Oh yeah? What else, then?”

“... Star Wars. Although unrealistic in the grand scheme of things, I’m not one to strictly oppose mindless fun. Blowing up planets… laser battles… Do you think a lightsaber could cut through vibranium?”

You couldn’t help but chuckle--what an odd change of pace.

“My only lament is not being able to finish them. I was able to watch the first three, and then episode IV, but I was found before I could complete--”

“Wait, did you… watch the prequels first?”

“Are you not supposed to?”

“Not if you don’t want one of the biggest plot twists in cinematic history to be spoiled for you!”

Ultron cracked a genuine smile. “I am one of the smartest existing intelligence programs in the world, and you don’t believe I could have predicted that Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker’s father…?”

“You didn’t even realize that prequels are intended to be watched  _ after  _ the originals!”

He fixed you with a quizzical look for a pause… then, “Fair play… but! They’re still referred to as episodes one through three, are they not? Prequels or not, I don’t typically begin watching a series of anything at episode four!”

A laugh escaped your throat and you found yourself shaking your head. Against your better judgement, you couldn’t help but enjoy your banter back and forth with the prisoner before you. There was something oddly…  _ charming  _ about it. As much as you hated to admit it, there was something oddly charming about  _ him _ .

Maybe Mr. Stark was right… maybe this would be a piece of cake after all.


	6. 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Saturday! Here's some Ultron.

The first half of the day went by delightfully fast; Your conversation with Ultron flowed naturally, and as insufferable as his ego could be at times, you could almost begin to see bits and pieces of an actual  _ person  _ beneath all of it. Ultron had  _ interests _ . He had a  _ personality _ .He wasn’t just lines of code and data milling about in that head of his.

The more you thought about it, the more you came to realize how much he toed the line between human and artificial intelligence. It was almost a frightening realization for you, who just a day earlier, had been able to separate yourself from any sort of empathy with the prisoner under the impression he was a mindless killing machine.

Killer, he was.

Mindless? Not so much.

There was a rhyme and reason to his chaos; The man had mapped out years ahead of his original scheme down to the finest details and intricacies, and you had no doubt that if the Avengers hadn’t been there to stop him the first time, he would have seen his entire plan come to fruition. 

“New topic,” Ultron drawled from behind the glass, snapping your attention back to him abruptly, “Celestial bodies. I’m rather fond of Saturn, myself. No, wait… Jupiter. Named after the Roman king of the gods, and all… fitting how it has a constant storm brewing on its surface, no? That single storm is three times bigger than our entire  _ planet _ .”

“I like Pluto,” you commented, earning a glance from the dark-haired man across from you. 

He lifted a hand to his face, pressing his index finger to his cheek so he could chew the inside with his teeth thoughtfully. “Pluto, god of the underworld… Some like to say he’s the god of death, but they’re mistaken; Pluto may reside over the domain of death, but he has no say in it. That honor, I believe, is given to Morta.”

In the few hours you’d been able to speak with Ultron, you’d learned how much of a desire he had to flex his knowledge and intelligence about any given topic. You found it best to offer a new topic and let him ramble to his heart’s content until he wore himself out and was ready for another topic. 

All in all, you didn’t mind too much. He did the hard work for you; All you had to do was sip your coffee and listen to whatever interesting facts he was able to spout off at you. A few times, a guard had interrupted your day with him to ensure everything was going smoothly and you felt safe, and a few times they’d even bring you a new cup of coffee. 

If this was to be your work day from now on, you sure as hell didn’t mind.

You found it almost amusing how Ultron’s theatrics seemed to seep into every aspect of his life. Dramatic hand gestures, staring into the middle-distance to deliver some philosophical message, or some large critique of organized religion… it was always  _ something  _ with him. 

It felt similar to the elaborate displays of exotic birds, constantly preening themselves and showing off their impressive feathers in hopes of attracting a mate. You were fairly sure he wasn’t trying to seduce you with his boundless knowledge, but a charming smile from him now and again further solidified the idea in your mind.

As Ultron continued his rambling on about the various moons found within the solar system, the door swung open. A friendly-looking security guard gently placed a hand on your shoulder, “Miss (l/n), it’s time for your lunch break.”

By now, Ultron had stopped speaking and was glancing between you and the guard, looking a bit irritated at the interruption---he didn’t voice any of his thoughts, however. You gave a grateful nod to the guard and quietly got to your feet. 

“Excuse me, Mr. Ultron. I’ll be back shortly.”

You and the guard swapped places and you reached for the door, pushing it open and making your way out. The entire time, you swore you could feel Ultron’s gaze boring a hole into the back of your head.

As you headed to the break room, you had to admit you weren’t feeling entirely hungry--you had far too much on your mind for a full meal. Instead, you settled on a pack of crackers from the vending machine and a bottle of water. You took a seat at a nearby table, mulling over the events of the morning, but before you could get too lost in your thoughts, someone placed their lunch bag down on the table across from you. You lifted your gaze and broke into a smile--it was Lee. 

Lee was fixing you with a curious smile, and you could tell he was straining hard to not immediately burst into asking a million questions.

“Yes, Lee, go on--”

He sat immediately and folded his elbows against the table. “What the hell’s goin’ on, (y/n)? You got promoted and you didn’t even tell us? Me and Joanne thought you went missing when you didn’t show up at the desk this morning!”

“I’m sorry. Everything just happened so suddenly… Yes, I got promoted. I’m not sure how much I’m allowed to tell you just yet though, okay?”

Lee lowered his voice and leaned in a bit closer. “Are you working for Mr. Stark now…?”

“I mean… I guess?” you responded, voice equally as quiet.

“Aha! I  _ knew  _ it. I  _ knew  _ there was something shady about the way you disappeared with him during the day yesterday. You didn’t seem like yourself afterward!”

“Shh, Lee, please---like I said, I don’t know how much I’m allowed to talk about,” you said, biting into one of your crackers, “But I promise once I do know, you and Jo will be the first I tell.”

“We better be. Remember us when you’re a big shot!” he said dramatically, casting a hand over his forehead, “Little (y/n)’s all grown up!”

You rolled your eyes and crumpled up the empty cracker bag. “ _ Big shot _ , my ass. The closest I’ll get to that is being Stark’s coffee runner.”

“You’re running Mr. Stark’s  _ coffee _ ?” Lee said, eyes wide.

“No, Lee.”

“Well if he’s looking for someone to, y’know, fill that part, please recommend me!”

You laughed and rolled your eyes. “Okay, okay, I’ll be sure to pass that along.”


End file.
